‘PLAYER’ GARDINER PLEADS NOT GUILTY
Convicted drug tra cker accused in New York court over drug and rearm conspiracy allegations
By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
CONVICTED Bahamian drug trafcker Jonathan Eric Gardiner denied US cocaine and frearms conspiracy charges yesterday after a New York judge rejected his latest bid to have the case thrown out. Gardiner pleaded not guilty to cocaine importation conspiracy and frearms-related
charges during his frst appearance in a New York court.
He will remain detained on consent without prejudice.
His arraignment came after federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York secured a grand jury indictment and announced plans to seize assets they say are linked to the alleged drug trafcking scheme.
The charges stem from an CHARGED - SEE PAGE THREE
Two police accused of extorting a US tourist
UNIONIST STABBED BEFORE DEADLY DUPLEX FIRE
By KEILE CAMPBELL Tribune Staff Reporter kcampbell@tribunemedia.net
TWO Royal Bahamas Police Force ofcers were granted bail yesterday after pleading not guilty to allegedly extorting $600 from a US tourist.
According to the allegations, American visitor Erick Mondelo was found with suspected drugs aboard a cruise ship and was later handed over to local authorities.
By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net
Prosecutors alleged that Breanna Miller, 23, of Cox Way, East Street, and Felton
UNIONIST Perry Cox was found dead with apparent stab wounds inside a burning Nassau Village duplex early yesterday, prompting his MP to condemn what he called a
heinous killing and urge Bahamians to resolve conficts peacefully. The fre broke out shortly after 2am on Lee Street, where police said three fre engines were dispatched after ofcers were alerted to the blaze.
-
PM: US drug case too serious for spectacle
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said yesterday that allegations surrounding a United States federal afdavit are “far too serious” to be reduced to political spectacle and accused the opposition of trying to destroy people’s character.
Speaking in the House of Assembly, Mr Davis said the opposition’s focus on the Drug Enforcement Administration case involving Eric Jonathan Gardiner had distracted from debate on the national budget.
PRIME MINISTER PHILIP ‘BRAVE’ DAVIS
BREANNA MILLER FELTON TURNER
Volunteers plant 4,000 mangroves at Dover Sound
WATERKEEPERS
Bahamas and local volunteers planted about 4,000 mangrove propagules at Dover Sound this month, marking the end of its 2025-2026 planting season.
The community restoration event, called "Everything Must Plant," was held on June 11 and brought together environmental groups, government agencies, students,
community organisations, and residents. Javan Hunt, special projects coordinator and mangrove nursery manager at Waterkeepers Bahamas, said the turnout showed the importance of community involvement in environmental restoration.
“Mangrove restoration is truly a community efort, and this event demonstrated what we can
achieve when people come together for a common purpose,” Mr. Hunt said. He said the newly planted mangroves will help stabilize shorelines, provide habitat for wildlife, and ofer protection against the efects of climate change.
Waterkeepers Bahamas thanked the volunteers and organizations that participated in the planting
exercise, including the University of The Bahamas, Grand Bahama Shipyard, Blue Action Lab, Kiwanis Club, Bishop Michael Eldon School, Keep Grand Bahama Clean, the Bahamas Forestry Department, the Department of Meteorology, Bonefsh & Tarpon Trust, Buccaneers Baseball Club, and Project Planet 242.
The organization also
acknowledged community residents who volunteered their time and members of its own team who spent months collecting propagules, preparing the site, and coordinating the event. With the Atlantic hurricane season now underway, Waterkeepers Bahamas will suspend planting activities and begin its annual propagule collection programme.
Chesna Cox, environmental science coordinator at Waterkeepers Bahamas, said the next phase of work is critical to future restoration eforts.
“The propagules we collect over the next several months will become the foundation for future restoration eforts,” Ms. Cox said. She said every propagule collected and planted contributes to healthier ecosystems, stronger coastlines and a more resilient Bahamas.
Waterkeepers Bahamas said the end of the planting season marks another step in its eforts to restore mangrove habitats, improve water quality and strengthen coastal communities throughout the country.
WATERKEEPERS and local volunteers plant about 4,000 mangroves planted this month.
Judge denies bid to dismiss
Gardiner’s US drug case
alleged long-running conspiracy to move large quantities of cocaine into the United States by plane.
Federal prosecutors allege Gardiner and others knowingly manufactured, distributed and possessed with intent to supply fve kilograms or more of cocaine, knowing the drugs would be smuggled into the United States, including waters within 12 miles of the US coast.
The indictment also alleges that the cocaine trafcking involved transportation aboard a US-registered aircraft.
Gardiner, 58, is further accused of possessing frearms and conspiring to possess frearms to support the alleged drug operation.
Prosecutors say Gardiner must forfeit any property derived from the alleged crimes, as well as assets used or intended to be used to commit or facilitate the ofences. They also seek forfeiture of frearms and ammunition allegedly connected to the crimes.
The indictment includes a substitute assets provision, meaning prosecutors intend to pursue other property belonging to Gardiner if alleged proceeds or assets cannot be located, have been transferred to third parties, moved outside the court’s jurisdiction, diminished in value or been mixed with other property that cannot easily be separated.
Gardiner was arrested last month after an aircraft travelling from Marsh Harbour, Abaco, to Grand Bahama crashed of the Florida coast on Election Day. He was among 11 Bahamians rescued by US authorities.
According to US court
flings, “the passengers aboard the aircraft were engaged in election-related activities, including voting and campaign work.”
His arraignment followed repeated attempts by his legal team to have the case dismissed.
US Magistrate Judge Sarah Cave denied his petition without prejudice yesterday, saying any challenge to his pretrial detention should be made through a bail hearing, which his attorneys may request through the clerk’s ofce.
After denying the petition, Judge Cave directed prosecutors to promptly turn over evidence to the defence so Gardiner’s lawyers would have enough time to prepare for trial.
The ruling came a day after Gardiner’s lawyer, Susy Ribero-Ayala, fled an emergency petition seeking dismissal of the case.
She made a similar request two days earlier, alleging the US government violated Gardiner’s constitutional and statutory rights by detaining him before fling a criminal complaint and failing to secure a timely indictment.
In Tuesday’s emergency fling, Ms Ribero-Ayala argued that the case involved more than a delayed indictment.
“Rather, it involves a foreign national who entered the United States only because of an aviation emergency; who was detained before any complaint was fled; who remains incarcerated despite the absence of an indictment; whose detention is justifed by reference to an alleged ongoing investigation dating back to at least 2023,” she said.
She said the circumstances amount to “an extraordinary
Gardiner pleaded not guilty to cocaine importation conspiracy and frearmsrelated charges during his frst appearance in a New York court.
deprivation” of liberty and warrant immediate court intervention.
The fling said Gardiner entered the United States involuntarily after the domestic fight from Abaco to Grand Bahama crashed in waters of Florida on May 12.
US authorities previously reported that when Gardiner was rescued, he had three mobile phones and $30,000 in Bahamian
worth $30m.
Ms Ribero-Ayala said all the other passengers were allowed to return to The Bahamas on May 13 after spending the night in a hotel, while only Gardiner and the pilot remained in US custody.
currency packed in a manner consistent with narcotics proceeds.
The money was allegedly found in an envelope labelled with the handwritten name of a Bahamian politician, whose name was redacted in the US fling.
That is the same politician alleged in US flings to have met with an undercover DEA source inside Parliament to discuss a cocaine shipment allegedly
The fling said the pilot was later released and returned to The Bahamas, but Gardiner was not allowed to leave the hospital after he was medically evaluated.
“Instead, there was an armed law enforcement ofcer guarding the area where Mr Gardiner was receiving medical treatment and awaiting clearance for discharge,” Ms Ribero-Ayala wrote.
“Once discharged from the hospital, Mr Gardiner was transported to Port
Canaveral and placed in a holding cell before being transferred to the Orange County Jail in Orlando, Florida. From that point forward, Mr Gardiner remained continuously deprived of his liberty.” She said Gardiner made his initial court appearance in Florida on May 15 before being moved through several detention facilities, including the Orange County Jail, the Seminole County Jail, a detention facility in Oklahoma and the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York, where he remains in custody. The fling also alleges that neither Gardiner’s attorneys nor his family had meaningful communication with him during the transfers.
Opposition calls for probe into US laundering allegations
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS
Tribune Staff Reporter
lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
OPPOSITION Leader
Michael Pintard has called for a commission of inquiry into allegations that drug trafcking proceeds were laundered through government contracts, arguing that US court flings tied to Eric “Player” Gardiner have raised questions too serious for the Davis administration to dismiss.
During his budget contribution yesterday, Mr Pintard said public money should be allocated for an independent inquiry into alleged corruption, drug trafcking links, money laundering through government contracts and the alleged involvement of public ofcials or members of the armed forces.
Corporate records have linked Top Notch Builders to Gardiner. The company was awarded a public-private partnership contract for the Eight Mile Rock Government Complex shortly before the 2017 general election. A related entity, Complete Construction, was later identifed as the contractor
for the Carmichael Village afordable housing project.
The controversy deepened after US court flings referred to an unidentifed “Politician 1”, who allegedly met with people connected to the drug traffcking investigation in a parliamentary setting. No court fling or Bahamian authority has publicly identifed that person.
Mr Pintard said the allegations were backed by international legal proceedings and should not be brushed aside as political theatre.
He criticised the government’s response to the matter, saying the police commitment to investigate undercut attempts by senior ofcials to dismiss the controversy.
“For those who said it was a nothing burger, the fact that no less than the Royal Bahamas Police Force commitment to conduct an investigation fies in the face,” he said. “In fact, it rebufs the Minister of Foreign Afairs, who said it is a nothing burger.” Mr Pintard said an inquiry should determine whether the unidentifed politician referenced in US flings exists and whether
others may be involved.
Mr Pintard also challenged the government to disclose all public contracts involving companies now under scrutiny.
He said the government should be transparent not only about contracts involving one company, but also about other companies that have drawn concern.
Despite his criticism, Mr Pintard said the opposition would support the overall budget, though it would object to some bills.
He attacked the budget as unrealistic, arguing that rising taxes have squeezed households while government spending has failed to deliver visible improvements in infrastructure, health care, education and sanitation.
He said VAT collections had grown signifcantly and argued that taxation under the current administration had reached about $12.5bn, while expenditure stood at about $17.4bn.
He said the gap between spending and results reinforced the need for greater accountability and an independent inquiry into the allegations now dominating national debate.
JONATHAN GARDINER
OPPOSITION LEADER MICHAEL PINTARD
Pintard declares FNM
‘unbowed’ after defeat in the general election
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter
lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
FREE National Move-
ment leader Michael Pintard yesterday sought to rally his party after its general election defeat, declaring the organisation “unbowed” and insisting it will return to Parliament as a sharper, more aggressive opposition.
Mr Pintard used his contribution to the 2026/2027 Budget Debate to acknowledge that voters had sent the FNM a clear message, while rejecting suggestions that the party had been left broken or divided after losing to the Progressive Liberal Party.
“The people have told us in the FNM, in no uncertain terms, that they expect a more vigorous opposition in the House and Senate and on our streets,” he said. “We accept their feedback and receive it constructively.
We are prepared to listen, evolve and improve and better serve those we work for, you, the people of The Bahamas.”
The FNM’s defeat has sparked questions about the party’s direction, leadership structure and Mr Pintard’s future. The party’s constitution requires a convention every two years, and the last convention was held in June 2024.
Earlier this month, the party’s council voted against holding an early convention, pushing the gathering to next year, though the date could still change. The decision has fuelled internal debate as attention turns to possible leadership contenders and the FNM’s rebuilding strategy.
Mr Pintard opened his budget contribution by trying to project resilience and unity.
“We know, Madam Speaker, that there are
some who expect and others who wish for us to spend our time sulking and licking our wounds,” he said. “Our enemies, Madam Speaker, now attempt through every means possible to sow seeds of division. In fact, they would rather we come to this chamber with our heads held down, bowed, our tongues silent, and our spirits crushed – never that, Madam Speaker. We will never grant them that satisfaction, not in Marco City, not in Freetown, not in MICAL, not in Central Grand Bahama, not in East Grand Bahama, not in St. Anne's, not in Long Island, not in Killarney. Unbowed, Madam Speaker, we will stand.
Mr Pintard also highlighted declining voter turnout, saying tens of thousands of registered voters stayed home.
“Some 66 per cent of voters in The Bahamas
cast their votes,” he said.
“If the official voter register is to be believed, this means that the single largest number of voters in the history of The Bahamas, some 70 plus thousand people, did not show up to vote.”
“No doubt it's for a variety of reasons, including the fact that they were unconvinced by the tale the PLP was telling about the “transformative” job they were doing in the last term. Tens of thousands of voters did not show up to vote. They were also, Madam Speaker, they were unconvinced by our proposal in the Free National Movement govern and so thousands of them, Madam Speaker,
did not show up.”
Mr Pintard said that for a second consecutive election, the government had been elected by a minority of eligible voters. He said the result showed that too many voters found all political parties unconvincing. He said both the former FNM administration and the current PLP government had failed to persuade a significant portion of the electorate, describing the trend as worrying even as voter turnout declines across the region.
Still, Mr Pintard said the opposition represents tens of thousands of Bahamians who do not believe their lives will
improve under the Davis administration.
“We know and accept fully that the PLP is the governing party by a large margin, but Madam Speaker, the FNM, while we remain the opposition, Madam Speaker, we recognise that we echo the dreams and aspirations of tens of thousands of Bahamians who do not believe that their fortunes will improve over the next five years under this administration,” he said.
He said the FNM would continue to challenge the government on corruption, inefficiency, mismanagement and irregularities, arguing that robust opposition is essential to accountability.
MP condemns killing after unionist found dead in re
STABBED from page one
Firefighters arrived to find smoke billowing from a lime-green-andwhite single-storey stone duplex. While battling the fire, officers forced their way into the affected apartment and found Cox, 63, lying unresponsive near the front door. He was removed from the residence and Emergency Medical Services personnel were called.
After examining him, EMS personnel confirmed he showed no signs of life. The blaze was quickly extinguished, but the structure sustained extensive damage. Police said a further examination of Cox’s body revealed apparent stab wounds, causing investigators to suspect foul play. An autopsy will be performed to determine the exact cause of death.
Speaking in the House of Assembly yesterday, Nassau Village MP Jamahl Strachan extended condolences to Cox’s family and described him as a loss to the constituency.
“We would have lost not only a community builder but also a strong advocate in the constituency, a father, and an uncle,” Mr Strachan said. He encouraged Bahamians to embrace peaceful conflict resolution and exercise patience.
Officers granted bail after denying $600 extortion claim
from page one
Turner, 27, of Sears Road, demanded and received $600 from Mr Mondelo in exchange for allowing him to avoid prosecution.
The matter reportedly came to light after Mr Mondelo fled a complaint, prompting an investigation that resulted in charges against both ofcers. Both defendants denied the extortion allegation before Magistrate Abigail Farrington. Turner was represented by attorney Maria Daxon, while Miller was represented by attorney Kelsie Munroe.
The magistrate granted each defendant $5,000 bail with one or two sureties. As a condition of bail, Miller was ordered to sign in at the East Street South Police Station on the last Sunday of every month. Turner was ordered to sign in at the Central Police Station on the last Sunday of every month. The pair are scheduled to return to court on September 15 for trial.
DATE & TIME
Wednesday, June 24, 2026, at 5:00 pm
PLACE
Grand Hyatt, Baha Mar Convention, Arts & Entertainment Center, 1 Baha Mar Boulevard, West Bay Street, Cable Beach, Nassau, The Bahamas.
RECORD DATE
Shareholders of record of the Company’s voting common shares as at the close of business on May 14, 2026, are entitled to vote at the meeting.
We further advise that the Bank’s 2025 Annual Report may be downloaded from the Company’s website www.combankltd.com
EXTORT
BREANNA MILLER
FELTON TURNER
FNM leader Michael Pintard speaks in the House of Assembly yesterday.
Photo: Chappell Whyms Jr
Davis accuses opposition of cheapening drug case claims
PM DEFLECTS QUESTIONS ON PUBLICLY FUNDED PLP VOUCHERS
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis avoided direct answers to questions in the House of Assembly yesterday about more than $200,000 in publicly funded gift certifcates that were distributed in Abaco in the names of Progressive Liberal Party candidates and ofcials before the May general election, pointing instead to what he alleged were similar practices before the 2012 general election.
The controversy had not been settled ever since Chris Lleida, the chief executive ofcer of Premier Importers, confrmed that the Ministry of Finance paid for the gift certifcates his company issued.
The issue erupted in the House last evening after North Abaco MP Kirk Cornish defended the government’s development work and declared: “We don’t discriminate.”
Long Island MP Dr Andre Rollins rose on a point of order, called the remark “another untruth” and accused Mr Cornish of misleading Parliament.
“The FNM, the COI, or any independent candidates did not get vouchers for their names on it paid for by the public treasury and it is a disgrace that that was allowed to be done under your administration, Mr Prime Minister and member for Cat Island, Rum Cay, and San Salvador,” he said. He added: “Never in the history of this country has the government allowed the people's money to be used to pay, to prosecute a political campaign.”
Mr Davis responded by pointing to what he alleged happened in Cat Island around the 2012 general election, when former Marco City MP Michael Pintard was the Free National Movement’s candidate there.
“You ask Marco City what was done in the 2012 election in Cat Island when
he was the candidate. I still have all the receipts, I still have all the letters that were issued even on election day for him,” Mr Davis said.
He rejected suggestions that he had raised a red herring, saying he had previously tabled documents in Parliament after the May 7, 2012 general election.
“I'll refer you to the frst sitting of the House after the May 7 election in my contribution, where I laid all those documents on the table of the house on the day May 7 election, those grants for startup business, 7500, number of them," he said.
“I also laid in this House the number of persons that they hired within a period of six months. An administrator had to step aside because he's afraid of an instruction being given to ensure that I get beat.”
Dr Rollins pushed back, saying the FNM had not done what the PLP has been accused of doing in Abaco.
Mr Pintard also rejected Mr Davis’ comments, accusing the prime minister of dragging the opposition into a controversy he said the government could not defend.
“If he put that on the public record what he is saying is completely false," he said. "I mean, the member for Cat Island is really the poster child for patronage. He's never missed an opportunity to incentivise voters by depositing substantial sums at various stores Cat Island, Rum Cay, and San Salvador but we weren't cheering on about that, so I don't think he should involve us.”
“He should not involve us in that matter. It is wrong for him to involve us in that matter in defending a point they cannot defend. The point being raised by Long Island is indefensible. So don’t involvement in that.”
Mr Davis said he was responding only to issues the opposition had raised during the debate, saying he tries “not to get involved in all the distractions”.
The Davis administration has mostly avoided questions arising from matters brought into public view by US authorities after Gardiner was arrested and indicted in the United States following an election day plane crash.
“We may have your political spectacle in the coming years, but I just wish to caution those who would supply it: do not do so at the expense of the serious matters that demand the maturity of this house and the trust of the Bahamian people,” Mr Davis said.
“Their decision to focus so much time, for example, and attention and gimmickry on a legal matter before the court, United States, in respect to a person arrested after plane crash, meant that the national budget not get the full attention it deserves.”
Mr Davis said the “serious allegations” raised in the case would be subjected to a full and independent investigation, adding that his position had not changed.
“Without the facts, it achieves nothing to continue to speculate by a press statements, political point scoring,
or social media commentary,” he said. “Allegations of this gravity are far too serious to be cheapened into a cycle of accusation, speculation, and spectacle. The only facts we know are the ones already in the public sphere. Up until now, the American courts provided no further information.”
His comments triggered a chaotic exchange in the House.
While ruling that certain comments from opposition members be expunged, House Speaker Patricia Deveaux said: “These people are concerned about everyday life. All of this what we charading in here about this and gaslighting what is going on with this particular case? While it’s important to the country, not one of my constituents talked about this.”
Mr Davis then sought to contrast the governing party’s conduct with the opposition’s, insisting his side had not tried to smear opponents.
“The stark diference between us and them. We don’t believe in tearing down people. We don’t believe in the sparing of character. Why have not y’all raised the issue of one of your candidates whose boat was
caught. I never spoke about it,” Mr Davis said, referring to former National Security Minister Marvin Dames.
“We have left that alone. I gave instructions my campaign not to raise that matter, because it’s nothing. Unless until we understand the facts, we will talk about it. We don’t know the facts, we leave it alone. The little grasping angry want to destroy what’s trying to destroy character with no reason.”
Mr Dames business partner, Malcolm Goodman, was arrested of Florida in February aboard a boat carrying roughly 200 kilograms of cocaine worth an estimated $4 million.
Mr Dames has denied any involvement, saying neither he nor his wife had knowledge of, involvement in, or benefted from any alleged unlawful activity.
Regarding the Election Day plane crash, the Ofce of the Prime Minister said yesterday that Mr Davis “has never travelled on the aircraft in question” and noted that the pilot involved, Ian Nixon, previously few the prime minister during an “earlier period when he utilised the services of Pineapple Air.”
DAVIS from page one
Prime Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis speaks in the House of Assembly yesterday.
Photo: Chappell Whyms Jr
The Tribune Limited
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UN chief visits Haiti
UN Secretary-General António
Guterres visited Haiti on Tuesday, where surging gang violence has left more than 1 in 10 people homeless.
New statistics released by the UN reveal that 2,300 people have been killed across Haiti so far this year, with another 100 kidnapped, while 1.5 million have been displaced. Among those abducted is James Boyard, cabinet director of the Defense Ministry, who was kidnapped last week in one of the few relatively safe areas of the capital.
Guterres’ one-day visit to Port-au-Prince comes after more than 30 people were killed, injured or missing last weekend in Cité Soleil, a seaside slum, according to Cooperative for Peace and Development, a local human rights organization.
His convoy sped past a neighbourhood once fully controlled by gangs that left in their wake decimated car dealerships, abandoned homes and dozens of concrete buildings pockmarked with bullet holes. A colourful bus known as a tap-tap rumbled past, its windshield peppered with bullet holes.
Grafti scrawled on a crumbling concrete wall read: “Down with Viv Ansanm, long live the police.” Viv Ansanm is a powerful gang federation that the US government designated a foreign terrorist organization. It is estimated to control 70% of Port-au-Prince.
Guterres travelled past dozens of Haitians who fed the clashes and now live in makeshift homes under large pieces of canvas strung up with frayed rope.
They are among the more than 300,000 people displaced by gang violence across Port-au-Prince — a record. Among them are more than 18,000 people who fed the Cité Soleil slum in May, according to the UN International Organization for Migration.
“Haiti’s displacement crisis is entering an even more alarming phase,” Gregoire Goodstein, IOM chief of mission in Haiti, said in a recent statement.
Guterres’s frst stop was the headquarters of the new gang-suppression force, which the UN Security Council approved in September. It replaces a UN-backed mission led by Kenyan police that aimed to help Haiti’s National Police fght gangs but remained underfunded and understafed. So far, Jamaica, Chad, El Salvador and Guatemala have deployed troops that number less than 1,000 to form part of the growing force, which is due to start operations in the coming weeks.
They are expected to work with Haiti’s National Police and its growing Armed Forces, with hundreds of Haitian men and a couple of women lining up on a dusty road hoping to interview to join.
Guterres then met behind closed doors with Prime Minister Alix Didier-Fils-Aimé,
who is under pressure to hold elections in the country of nearly 12 million people that hasn’t had a president since Jovenel Moïse was killed at his private residence in July 2021.
“We had a frank conversation about what’s happening in Haiti, the vision the government has for the future,” FilsAimé told The Associated Press after the meeting.
He said security is a priority so the transitional government can hold elections and “get back to republican rule.” Fils-Aimé added that Guterres can help with that efort by ensuring that the countries backing the gang-suppression force “live up to their engagement.”
Forced to fee to makeshift shelters
Guterres also stopped by a makeshift shelter in a former school where dozens of the people living there crowded around him.
Forced to fee their homes after gangs shot up their community and set fre to it, some had been living there for up to four years.
“Solino is not ready,” 31-year-old Cliford Lala said of going back to his community. It was one of the last holdouts in Port-au-Prince until gangs overran it.
Guterres ducked into a hot classroom and met privately with a group of six women who decried the lack of privacy at the shelter, even to shower or use the bathroom, and said they worried about their young children.
“It’s skin-to-skin and mouth-to-mouth,” said one woman.
The shelter houses more than 1,200 people who sleep side by side, and only one meal a day is guaranteed.
“We’re going to do our best,” Guterres told the women.
Outside, a man began to slap the building’s metal siding and bellowed, “We want to go back home!” His voice grew louder and angrier as security walked into the room and whisked Guterres away.
Wendy Cejour, 26, told the AP that he and his family have been living at the school for a year and a half.
“As long as we’re alive we have hope, but … things are difcult,” he said. “We ask ... to return to our neighbourhood to live better, because we don’t have a life here.”
A day before Guterres’s visit, Human Rights Watch published a letter urging him to protect the population and target the root causes of violence and human rights abuses. Guterres said he was deeply impacted by what he saw.
“What I saw will not leave me,” he said. “Each day is a fght to survive. ... The women and the children pay the highest price.”
By DÁNICA COTO Associated Press
Is Urban Renewal e ective
EDITOR, The Tribune.
I HAVE seldom agreed with many of the initiatives which would have been promulgated by former Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Perry Gladstone Christie over his checked and long political career. No doubt, like many of us Bahamians, he is a ‘good’ man and held good intentions.
One of his most well thought out ideas would have been, in my opinion, the conceptualisation of Urban Renewal and the community building and knitting programs and projects which were envisioned.
A Big part of the mission statement was to: Wipe away the tears from every eye; to visit the shut ins; to visit those imprisoned; the demolition of abandoned buildings and structures which could harbor suspected criminals and the homeless; rehabilitation of
ofenders and reintegration back into the wider society. Urban Renewal dovetailed with the mission statement of my own nonproft community based Common Cause. The original Co-Chairs back in the 1990’s were none other than the present Governor General, Dame Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt and now the Most Right Honorable, Algernon SPB Allen, a former MP for Marathon and a senior cabinet minister in the Ingraham administrations She was a MP of Parliament for what is now Saint Barnabas; a former cabinet minister; and Acting Prime Minister when Brother Christie sufered some medical issues. Brother Allen, God bless his soul, coined the now fabled expression: ‘ Precious Pearls & Little Darlings’ When they got to work
within the inner-city areas of New Providence, back then, one could see and feel the tangible progress made under their watch. The enlightened Davis administration institutionalise what is now The Urban Renewal Authority, with co-chairs; a Managing Director (former Chief Supt Stephen Dean) and a full staf complement. What is the now mandate and what active programs; projects and community eforts are underway? Public details and accountability are critical during these times and value for money Must be demonstrated and seem. Is The Urban Renewal Authority efective or merely showboating? To God then, in all things, be the glory.
ORTLAND H BODIE, Jr Nassau, June 14, 2026.
e mirror we avoid
ey come from among us:
EDITOR, The Tribune.
CRIMINALITY and corruption do not originate from somewhere else; they come from among us.
Bahamians often overlook this truth because it is easier to imagine wrongdoing as an external invasion rather than an internal issue. It is simpler to blame criminals, politicians, foreigners, gangs, or “bad apples” than to refect on what kind of culture continuously produces, excuses, rewards, and protects them.
Criminals are not born in isolation, nor do corrupt individuals suddenly appear. They are raised in our homes, educated in our schools, welcomed in our churches, employed in our businesses, defended in our communities, promoted through our political parties, and sometimes celebrated at public events.
They are our cousins, classmates, neighbors, donors, contractors, civil servants, friends, campaign workers, police ofcers, business partners, members of parliament, senators, defense force ofcers, customs ofcers, immigration ofcers, and family members. They are not outsiders; they are refections in a mirror.
This does not imply that everyone is guilty. I suggest that we must stop pretending that criminality and corruption can persist without social permission. They exist because someone benefts, someone remains silent, someone looks away, and someone says, “That is just how things are.”
Someone excuses wrongdoing because the ofender is “one of us.” Someone publicly condemns theft but privately celebrates the thief when the money returns home.
The behaviors and attitudes we accepted and overlooked yesterday have gradually shaped the cultural landscape we inhabit today. Similarly, the actions and beliefs we tolerate and endorse now will defne the societal norms of tomorrow. Our current decisions are not isolated incidents;
they are contributions to our collective identity and determine the culture we will pass on to the next generation.
Criminality is not solely a law enforcement issue; it is a cultural, economic, family, governance, and values issue. Young people do not simply wake up one day and choose destruction. Many are molded in environments where legitimate pathways to dignity, income, ownership, and advancement seem blocked or meaningless. However, poverty alone does not create crime; many impoverished individuals remain honest, disciplined, and decent. Crime fourishes where illegal money is admired, violence is glamorized, consequences are inconsistent, and communities protect ofenders out of fear, loyalty, or personal gain.
Corruption follows a similar pattern. It is not confned to a bribe or a stolen government contract. Corruption begins when public responsibility is treated as a private opportunity. It manifests when a permit is expedited because of connections. It appears when political loyalty takes precedence over competence. It emerges when public funds become private profts and contracts are awarded based on connections rather than capability. It thrives when knowledgeable individuals remain silent because speaking out may jeopardise their access, comfort, position, or relationships.
A corrupt society does not always appear chaotic; sometimes it looks respectable. It wears suits, occupies front pews, speaks at conferences, and utilises the language of development, service, faith, patriotism, and progress. Yet beneath this façade lies a system driven by favoritism, fear, silence, and self-interest.
This is why enforcement alone will never resolve the
problem. Arrests and prosecutions are important, as are strong institutions. But if the culture continues to reward dishonesty, we will simply replace one ofender with another. We will keep cutting branches while neglecting the roots.
The more profound question is not just, “Who committed the crime?” but also, “What allowed this person to believe they could do it and escape consequences?” Who protected them? Who normalised their actions? Who profited from it? Who remained silent? Who made excuses? Who viewed corruption as cleverness? Who rationalised criminality as survival?
A conscientious society must be willing to examine itself without finching. We cannot demand clean government while tolerating dishonest practices in our own circles. We cannot condemn national corruption while engaging in personal favoritism. We cannot complain about crime while celebrating the gains from crime. We cannot construct a lawful country based on selective morality. The standard should be simple: wrongdoing is wrongdoing, even when committed by people we like, support, love, or beneft from.
Until we accept that criminality and corruption come from among us, we will continue to treat the symptoms while reproducing the disease. The battle is not just against criminals in the streets or corrupt ofcials in ofce; it is against the culture that sustains them.
The Bahamas will change when Bahamians decide that character matters more than connections, truth matters more than tribe, and principles matter more than personal gain. They come from among us. So must the courage to stop them.
C ALLEN JOHNSON Freeport, Grand Bahama June 16, 2026.
Send help to curb Haitian shipments
EDITOR, The Tribune. Good day Director McKenzie, I am writing this email very bothered and disturbed due to the situation I am constantly seeing in Inagua. Boats are continuously coming from Haiti and no one seems to be properly checking or monitoring what is being brought of these vessels and then openly ofered for sale in our country!
Customs could care less about safety as it seems like the main focus is only on money! I have only seen one shipment seized, and that was when someone had to fy in from Nassau, but where is that same energy now? Why start something and then not follow through or sustain it?
The things I am seeing coming of these boats from Haiti are honestly alarming and yet no one seems concerned or interested in
addressing it! As a country it really feels like we have no real border protection because everyone is more worried about personal gain and “greasing pockets” than doing the job properly.
Everyone else is expected to follow the law, so how are these people continuously allowed to break it right in front of everyone? What exactly is your department doing about this situation? Are we seriously going to wait until there is an outbreak or some major incident before action is taken?
Customs is clearly not taking it seriously, so that is why we have environmental and other ofcers in place, but then why are they not actively inspecting these shipments either? This is very concerning.
Prescription drugs, illegal food items, and many other questionable goods are coming of these boats
and being sold, yet there is still no visible urgency or enforcement. This has to stop!
I will be contacting every news media house I can think of because laws are supposed to apply to everyone, not just a select few. It always seems like things are being swept under the rug until it becomes a bigger crisis.
What I am saying are facts and this matter needs to be properly addressed. I am including everyone who should be concerned in this thread because immediate action is needed. Why are we allowing illegal shipments from Haiti in the frst place? Do you all even see the condition and potential danger of these goods being brought in? Something needs to be done!
K PALACIOUS
Inagua June 17, 2026.
Govt plans new title rules and revised vehicle fees
By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune News Editor rrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE government plans to overhaul vehicle ownership rules by requiring a Certifcate of Title for every imported vehicle, introducing new licence fees and moving the Road Trafc Department toward a fully cashless system.
Transport Minister Leon Lundy said the Road Traffc (Amendment) Bill, 2026, will require a title certificate to be issued before any imported vehicle is released from customs control, creating a permanent ownership record from the moment a vehicle enters The Bahamas.
The certifcate would also have to be presented whenever a vehicle changes hands, a move Mr Lundy said is intended to tighten a resale market he described as vulnerable to shadow transfers, untaxed sales and uninsured vehicles changing hands without proper oversight.
one of the government’s major revenue collectors.
Mr Lundy said the department processed more than 130,000 vehicle registrations and more than 100,000 driver’s licences in 2025, collecting more than $50m in government revenue across more than 30 locations.
Mr Lundy also said the department has committed to becoming fully cashless, with the transition being developed in partnership with the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance, the Public Treasury and advisers.
He said digital payment by debit card, credit card and Sand Dollar would follow. A real-time revenue analytics dashboard would allow the government to monitor collections as they happen.
in revenue owed to the government. The department also audited taxi and livery plates, recalled inactive plates and reissued them to drivers.
Mr Lundy said a new Transport Management System, being developed by Canadian Bank Note and project-managed by Deloitte, is targeted for launch by December.
Once completed, he said, Bahamians will be able to renew vehicle registrations and licences remotely.
“Not a future aspiration — a commitment with a deadline,” Mr Lundy said.
The proposed changes form part of what Mr Lundy called one of the most ambitious legislative programmes the Road Trafc Department has undertaken in a generation.
The reform would be paired with a Motor Vehicle Title Clearance Certifcate, which every registered owner would have to obtain before transferring a vehicle to another person.
The bill would also introduce a revised vehicle licence fee structure. Class A vehicles weighing up to 3,000 pounds would carry a $160 fee. Class B vehicles, weighing between 3,000 and 5,000 pounds, would cost $215. Class C vehicles would cost $610, while Class D vehicles, the heaviest category, would cost $760. Fully electric vehicles would carry a lower $125 fee.
New five mph speed limit set for Nassau Harbour boaters
By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune News Editor
BOATERS in Nassau Harbour will face a new fve-mile-per-hour speed limit from July 1. Transport Minister Leon Lundy said the Boat Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2026, will set a maximum speed of fve miles per hour, or a no-wake speed, within the Harbour of Nassau.
The existing Pilotage (Port of Nassau) Rules do not set a numerical speed limit for Nassau Harbour, but prohibit vessels from travelling at a speed that causes their wash to damage or inconvenience any craft or person in the harbour.
Mr Lundy said the new bill would also require boats in all port areas to operate at a safe speed, defned by the operator’s ability to take proper and efective action to avoid a collision.
The same fve-mile-perhour rule would apply to commercial recreational watercraft under the Commercial Recreational Watercraft (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The Water Skiing and Motor Boat Control (Amendment) Bill, 2026 would extend similar protections to motor boats.
Mr Lundy said the measures are part of a broader maritime safety package intended to bring tighter control to Nassau Harbour and other port areas.
The legislation would also target abandoned vessels. Under the Boat Registration amendment, owners who leave vessels unmanned for 21 or more consecutive days would face strict liability, with penalties reaching $100,000.
Mr Lundy said abandoned vessels block channels, damage the environment and cost the public money to remove.
The Water Skiing and Motor Boat Control amendment would create
abandonment penalties reaching $50,000 and up to two years in prison for the most serious violations.
The measures follow recent removal and clean-up eforts by the Port Department. Mr Lundy said sunken vessels have been removed from Montague Dock and Potter’s Cay, while the department is overseeing the removal of the 80-foot steel-hull trawler Adrianna, the M/Y Double Shot and the Transcargo. He said that work is nearing completion. Clean-up exercises have also been carried out at Clifton Pier.
Mr Lundy said the new laws would send a clear message that Nassau Harbour is a working harbour and that reckless conduct on the water will face stronger enforcement.
“The recklessness that has too long been tolerated on our waters will now meet the frm hand of the law,” he said.
The proposed fees come as the Road Trafc Department continues to serve as
The move comes after an audit of vehicle licence categories uncovered misclassified vehicles and recovered $112,500
He said Road Traffic services are also being expanded in the Family Islands through an automation initiative covering Inagua, Mayaguana, Acklins, Crooked Island, the Berry Islands and Cat Island. Three locations are already operating, while the others await staff placements, he said.
Transport Minister Leon Lundy speaks in the House of Assembly yesterday.
Photo: Chappell Whyms Jr
Charlie Harper • Stateside
White and the White House UFC event showcases Trump “ally”
THE northeastern US has been enjoying San Diego-type weather for much of this month of June, and the cool nights and mostly dry, cloudless days of 75-degree warmth have offered a salving context for what now seems like ordinary news.
There was an exception to the fne weather. One thundershower outburst on Sunday evening caused a delay in one of the more amazing events to occur during this crazy second term of Donald Trump’s US presidency.
That was the staging of an Ultimate Fighting Championship event on the south lawn of the White House. Founded in 1993 as a forum for martial arts combat, UFC began to grow and prosper at the beginning of this century, and has now evolved into a lucrative corporate venture that grossed over $1.5 billion last year. The enterprising leader of UFC has for the past quarter century been Dana White, a college dropout and former bar bouncer whose innate entrepreneurial instincts and showmanship have led the frm to prominence and riches. White, who often dresses in black and effortlessly projects a tough-guy image with his shaved head and pugilistic jaw, is the perfect front man for UFC.
White and UFC are also natural allies for president Trump and have been for well over a decade, given the anti-establishment, unconventional, alienated and muscular perspective they share.
White spoke at the 2016 Republican National Convention, where he endorsed then-Republican nominee Donald Trump. White recalled at that convention that Trump had helped the UFC in its early days, allowing the UFC to host its frst event at the Trump Taj Mahal resort in Atlantic City when other venues refused to host the UFC. According to news accounts at the time, White said "no arenas wanted us. This guy reached out, and he's always been a friend to me."
White reiterated his support for Trump for the 2020 election and, in February 2020, he donated $1 million to America First Action, a heavyweight political action committee that supported Trump's re-election bid. He again endorsed Trump during the 2024 election campaign and introduced him at the 2024 Republican National Convention.
More recently, White was present at the 2026 White House Correspondents' Dinner shooting in April, and he reportedly boasted
afterwards that he ignored commands from authorities when they stormed the room while Trump evacuated the scene. "Tables getting fipped over, guys running in with
that prohibited construction of Washington DC offce or commercial buildings above certain specifed heights. The result is the skyscraper-free scene you see when regarding panoramic views of Ameri-
members and broadcast capabilities on the White House South Lawn, plus a fan festival for more than 100,000 guests on the Ellipse just to the south of the White House campus, was a massive
restrooms were loaded out, camera towers and staging came down. It continued throughout the week as interior fencing, power and tents, and bleachers were removed.
By tomorrow, according to a schedule reportedly sourced to UFC, total event load-out should be complete.
guns and they were screaming 'Get down.' I didn't get down,” White recalled.
“It was awesome. I literally took every minute of it in, and it was a pretty crazy, unique experience. We were sitting right in front of the table, right in front of where the president was.”
Macho bravado aside, it’s pretty clear that Dana White and Donald Trump are in many ways meant for each other. And it has been a very effective and helpful alliance for both of them.
The setup for Sunday’s birthday bash (Trump turned 80 on that day) took weeks to perfect, and the giant steel infrastructure housing the matches towered over the White House, temporarily altering a perspective unchanged for generations and legally enshrined in century-old federal legislation called the Height Act of 1910
ca’s capital city. The setup process for Sunday’s extravaganza, which began May 20, was a coordinated effort on a tight timeline with signifcant security constraints. Every day, 20 to 30 trucks flled with UFC equipment such as staging infrastructure were screened before installation on White House grounds. The buildout required 700 to 900 subcontractors with specialized knowledge for each element of the construction. By all accounts, the logistics were handled professionally. According to CNN’s web site, creating an arena with seating for 4,000 audience
Some anglers praise forward-facing sonar, others say high-tech fshing ruins a day at the lake
By JACK DURA Associated Press
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Ah, the serenity of fshing.
Just an angler, a fshing pole and maybe thousands of dollars worth of sonar equipment offering an exact image of what that walleye or bass is doing in the watery depths below. It's called forward-facing sonar, and the hot-selling products are not only helping anglers increase their catch, they are raising questions about why people go fshing in the frst place and whether fsh populations can survive the new technology.
"You've got people that are concerned about what's going to happen to the sport of fshing," said Gary Korsgaden, who has written about the sport for decades.
How fshing with sonar works Fish-fnding sonar is typically mounted on the bow or back of a boat, sending out sound frequencies that are converted into a picture on a screen based on the time it takes the pings to hit the bottom and return. Earlier products would show where fsh were located, but advancements now enable anglers to see images of fsh in real time.
"With forward-facing sonar, you can attach it to a trolling motor and you can look around the water under you and you
could fnd exactly, pinpoint where that fsh exactly is at any given time," said Dave Dunn, a sales executive at Garmin, a company that manufactures the equipment. Dunn notes the equipment, which costs about $2,500 for a full setup, enables anglers to even see their lures and cast directly to fsh. It does have a learning curve. For Minnesota angler Terry Rehm, the new technology is invaluable. Rehm said he doesn't get a lot of lake time due to his work and kids' schedules and forward-facing sonar ensures he makes good use of his time plying the waters.
"It's just nice to be able to hone in on them a little quicker and fnd them quicker and catch more fsh when I'm out here," he said.
Growing use of the technology Tens of millions of people fsh recreationally each year, making it one of the nation's top activities.
But people fsh for different reasons and those who care most about the tranquility and beauty of being on a lake can fnd it puzzling that other anglers eagerly hunch over their screens, watching as fsh swim by below. Still, the use of the technology is growing dramatically, with surveys in Minnesota fnding about 30% of anglers now use forward-facing sonar.
Surveys of anglers on several Minnesota lakes found the user rate as high as 63% on one lake last fall, Walleye Alliance spokesperson Nate Blasing said.
Much of the debate around forward-facing sonar plays out on social media, but also podcasts, online fshing forums, trade shows and tournaments.
"It's much like politics now. It tends to get personal. You can agree to disagree," Blasing said. Criticisms and reactions go back and forth on social media, said Korsgaden, the fshing writer. He said tournament anglers have banned him from their Facebook pages for even raising the topic.
"I think the unfortunate reality is fshing has gotten to be more about, shall we say, success or numbers or quantity, that type of thing, instead of the actual enjoyment of the engagement and making decisions on your own," Korsgaden said.
Sonar may make little difference
Even as anglers say the equipment helps ensure they will actually catch fsh, some studies indicate it hasn't led to overfshing.
Wisconsin researchers conducted a controlled experiment last year with two teams of anglers fshing for smallmouth bass, one with forward-facing sonar, the other without. Halfway through the summer, the teams switched.
production requiring huge investment, a year of planning and weeks of setup.
After all the celebrations were over, breakdown of the structure started early Monday with removal of security provisions, including pedestrian barriers and anti-scale fencing. Throughout the mornings earlier this week, merchandise trailers were set to depart, food and beverage operators were slated to start dismantling their vendor stalls, and broadcast equipment was dismantled. US Secret Service began removing the magnetometers and tenting around the security screening areas.
On Tuesday, portable
Early next week, dumpsters will be taken away and exterior fencing will be removed. Why is it not a surprise that after such expense and careful planning and execution, the biggest takeaway fromTrump’s birthday fght card is the crude comment of one of the winning fghters?
After winning the biggest fght of his career Sunday night on the South Lawn of the White House, UFC heavyweight Josh Hokit aimed an unexpected insult in his post-fght interview at former frst lady Michelle Obama. "Michelle Obama is a man," Hokit said. "Am I right, America?"
Reaction from spectators on South Lawn was reportedly mostly shocked silence. On the Ellipse south of the White House, where tens of thousands of people gathered for a UFC Freedom 250 watch party, Hokit’s disparaging comment about Obama drew mixed reactions. There were some cheers and some equally quizzical looks at what the fghter had just said.
Trump and White, often seen as encouraging and even facilitating such brazen, bigoted outrageousness, had the good sense to disavow or ignore Hokit’s comment.
Meantime, in what appeared to some observers as almost an afterthought, the president announced that hostilities in the Iran war had ceased. Trump said he
expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Iran tomorrow. It may be signifcant in this context that just a week ago, the US Congress had fnally mustered the resolve to fex its muscles in opposition to a war initiated by Trump that has proven to be overwhelmingly unpopular with American voters at a critical time, when polls suggest that Americans are just beginning to focus their attention on November’s elections for control of the US House of Representatives and Senate.
The US House last Wednesday had voted to direct Trump to withdraw US forces from the confict with Iran or win approval from Congress to continue the war, after four Republicans sided with Democrats in a sign of growing opposition to a military campaign that began on the last day of February.
Details of the Trump-Iran MOU were not immediately available, leading to widespread speculation and much criticism of the reported deal. The president said that the Strait of Hormuz would reopen tomorrow after the MOU was signed. He continued to reassure Americans (and many other concerned citizens in Europe and the Middle East) that the US would continue to not permit Iran to develop a nuclear weapon, and noted that the new 60-day cease fre established by the MOU would enable further discussions on this sensitive issue. But there were different interpretations of what the MOU actually says and means.
CBS News reported on Tuesday that Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard said that under the agreement, their country will receive half of its roughly $24 billion in long-frozen funds before fnal negotiations begin during the ceasefre extension. US vice president J D Vance disagreed on TV, asserting that Iran will get none of the money until it demonstrates compliance with the deal's terms. Meanwhile, Israel continues to bombard southern Lebanon to defeat Hezbollah. Israeli offcials said their country is not bound by the MOU to end its fght with Hezbollah nor to pull its forces out of Lebanon. President Trump, Pakistani mediators, and Iran have all said the deal includes a cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including in Lebanon. It sounds like there are a few details still to be worked out.
The team without the technology had higher catch rates, though the team using it caught slightly longer fsh, said Greg Sass, fsheries research team leader with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources' Offce of Applied Science. The sonar users searched more for fsh before even fshing, while the other team spent more time actively fshing.
Sass said he is reluctant to apply the study to all fsh species and water bodies, but the fndings "would be counterintuitive to what I'm hearing in the bait shops or from other people that are on both sides of the
fence with technology," he said. More studies are ahead, including for the muskie, a prized predator fsh. Eric Sanft, a fsheries specialist for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, said an analysis of lakes across the state didn't fnd "negative impacts" from the use of forward-facing sonar in fshing. Surveys by wildlife offcers in Minnesota found people using forward-facing sonar ended up catching similar numbers and variety of fsh as anglers who cast their lines the old-fashioned way.
Saturday, May 23, 2026
AP
"To some degree, it can get scapegoated a little bit, and people's perceptions of what other people are doing is often different than what the reality is," said Marc Bacigalupi, a regional fsheries supervisor for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The department has proposed reducing the daily walleye limit from six fsh to four, partially because of advancements in fsh-fnding technology, among other factors such as a boom in ice fshing, attention on hot spots from social media and lower limits in surrounding states.
Top: An overall view during the featherweight bout between Diego Lopes and Steve Garcia during UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn of the White House, Sunday, June 14, 2026, in Washington.
Kent Nishimura/Pool Photo via AP
Bottom: The UFC Fan Fest on the White House Ellipse ahead of the fights on the South Lawn, Sunday, June 14, 2026, in Washington.
AP Photo/Allison Robbert
TERRY Rehm points out a fish on his forward looking sonar system
in Nowthen, Minn.
Photo/Mark Vancleave
IN 2018, then-Opposition
Leader Philip Davis strongly criticized the nasty attacks and stupidity of then-Speaker of the House of Assembly, Halston Moultrie, who repeatedly proved his unftness for that high offce. Davis rightly labelled the bumptious and narcissistic Moultrie as a “bullying buffoon.”
As an incoming prime minister, Mr. Davis had the opportunity in 2021 to ensure the selection of a competent, highly-regarded Speaker, fuent in English, parliamentary procedure, decorum, and common sense.
Speaker Patricia Deveaux proved spectacularly incapable on all fronts.
In 2022, she launched an inexcusable attack on NEMA Director, Captain Stephen Russell, from the chair.
Sadly, instead of a display of humility and an acknowledgment of error, Speaker Deveaux doubled down in a crude and obnoxious display of arrogance and defensiveness. During her frst term as Speaker, she proved to be another bullying buffoon.
The Chair of the House of Assembly is not a personal perch from which the Speaker should sound off on public issues, as she sometimes does.
The Rules clearly state that the Speaker must not participate in debates. The reason for that should be obvious: to maintain impartiality and the appearance of impartiality.
This year, Mr. Davis had the opportunity to chose a better speaker. Because of his failure to do so the current Speaker—like Mr. Moultrie—will continue to embarrass herself, the House, the governing party,
Front Porch National embarrassment: belligerent, bullying Speaker
and the country. Her chest-beating statement that she has a legal team to back her up suggests just how out of her depth and incapable she is in her in her role. In an editorial last week, The Nassau Guardian observed:
“When the government was faced with questions arising from a criminal complaint fled in the United States against Jonathan Eric Gardiner, [Foreign Minister Fred] Mitchell chose not to confront the issue head-on in the House of Assembly this week, but to instead rise up as the Progressive Liberal Party’s (PLP) chief damage control offcer.
“He has spent recent days dismissing the indictment, while feigning unfamiliarity with a document that has dominated public discussion for weeks, and seeking to silence members of Parliament attempting to raise a matter of undeniable national importance during a budget debate.”
Taking her cue from Mr. Mitchell, the Speaker was, the journal noted, “remarkably wrongheaded in her attempt to dismiss the allegations by claiming she could have the House sergeant-atarms escort a member of the opposition to a police station to report on the matter. We suspect she was emboldened by the stance Mitchell has taken. She was mistaken.”
The Speaker appears not to have a mind of her own. Instead, she seems guided by whatever posture and line of attack is taken by PLP members, even if they are wrong. A group of owls is known as a “parliament”. Mrs. Deveaux is more peacock than owl. But she is a surpris-
ingly obsequious owl, who should remember that she is not the PLP speaker, but the speaker for all members. By continually trying to prove herself to her “side”, she looks like a puppet.
Halston Moultrie, for all his idiocy, was not afraid to challenge the FNM, even when he appeared ridiculous. Mrs. Deveaux has the opposite problem.
Will she ever be prepared to rule against the government?
Does she have the courage and independence to protect the minority, and the conventions, rules, and standards of the House? Watching the debates, it sometimes seems that some of the House clerks may be uncomfortable with her tone, posture, and judgement.
Ironically, had the government and the Speaker allowed the Opposition to speak about various allegations and to table various documents, they may have taken the air out of the some of the Opposition’s assault. Instead, the brouhaha in the House, and the Speaker’s bellicosity, dominated the headlines, social media posts, and national discussion for days, often obscuring the government budgetary priorities and public relations.
The crude attempt to shut down the Opposition backfred, fuelling their complaints and making the Davis Administration look like it has something to hide.
When the prime minister sought to refer remarks to the Committee of Privilege, made by East Grand Bahama MP, Kwasi Thompson, relative to Minister of Finance Michael Halkitis and his relationship to Top Notch
Builders, a company also tied to Gardiner, the Speaker readily agreed. This was another demonstration of bias. The information to which Mr. Thompson referred is already in the public domain. Neither he nor his opposition colleagues were engaging in “frivolous gossip”.
There was also a clash over whether matters left unfnished before Parliament was dissolved ahead of the general election could be brought back before the Public Accounts Committee. When the Opposition stated they may take the matter to the courts, she was belligerent in her response.
The clashes between the Speaker and Opposition Leader, Michael Pintard, Kwasi Thompson, and Long Island MP, Andre Rollins, have dissolved into shouting matches.
It calls to my mind a pro-
and dignity – not to mention the Rules – of the House of Assembly. She seems intent on continuing with the degradation started by Speaker Moultrie. In some ways she is making Moultrie look like an Oxford don and an expert in Erskine May’s Parliamentary Practice.
British constitutional authority Walter Bagehot pointed out that to maintain the respect of the people, parliament must be functional, as well as stately and dignifed.
Every member is responsible for maintaining the stateliness and dignity of the House of Assembly, but responsibility for this rests mostly on the shoulders of the person who occupies the Chair: the Speaker. If stateliness and dignity collapse, respect will also decline.
It is the Speaker who most represents the House to the
sponsible for the orderly and dignifed conduct of a chamber that, by its very nature, can generate considerable passion.
When one continues to place incapable people in positions that further erode standards, it often comes back to bite you in the derrière. It’s a lesson many thought Mr. Davis would have learned after his frst term.
The Speaker may continue to be a useful tool for the government. Yet, because of her manner and behavior, she is a political problem and distraction.
When Woodes Rogers was Royal Governor, a royal mandate was carried out to establish the House of Assembly in 1729. Nearly 300 years later it remains a cornerstone of our parliamentary democracy. It’s the Speaker’s role to protect this primary national institution,
A primer on uranium enrichment and Iran's nuclear program
By ADITHI RAMAKRISHNAN AP Science Writer
WHEN the U.S. and Israel launched the war against Iran on Feb. 28, President Donald Trump said one of the main objectives was to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon.
That has put a focus on Iran's stockpile of uranium and its program to convert this naturally occurring element into material that can sustain a nuclear reaction — a process called enrichment. Several key nuclear sites in Iran were attacked by the U.S. and Israel last summer, and again during the latest war. Iran's leaders insist the country's nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes. Before the war began, it had a stockpile of enriched uranium that was a short, technical step from weapons-grade material, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. Iran had an organized nuclear weapons program up until 2003, the U.N. agency and Western nations say.
Here's a deeper look at uranium enrichment and Iran's nuclear program.
What is uranium enrichment?
Uranium, like other elements, is found in slightly different confgurations. One, called U-235, is best at powering nuclear reactions. It is less stable than the more common form, which means it's easier to split to release the energy needed for producing electricity or a weapon. But U-235 makes up less than 1% of the uranium found in nature.
To isolate the more desirable U-235, scientists strip away its more stable cousin, U-238, through a process known as enrichment.
How is uranium enriched?
The most common way to enrich uranium is by spinning uranium gas in a centrifuge, where lighter U-235 separates from the heavier U-238. This is done in stages, using multiple centrifuges that enrich the uranium bit by bit.
The early stages are especially labor-intensive because there is so much more U-238 to strip away, said nuclear security specialist Sébastien Philippe at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Over time, the enrichment process gets easier.
The process can take anywhere from days to months to years,
depending on the size of the enrichment plant, the technology being used and how far the uranium is being enriched. Different uranium enrichment levels are required for different purposes For a nuclear reactor that makes electricity, uranium is typically enriched up to 5%. Nuclear reactors used for science experiments run on uranium enriched up to 20%. Anything enriched to 20% and above is considered "highly enriched"
uranium and above 90% is considered weapons-grade, though some very highly enriched uranium can be used for research and medical purposes, according to the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation.
How much enriched uranium does Iran have?
Iran is thought to have 972 pounds (441 kilograms) of uranium that is enriched up to 60% purity, according to the IAEA.
A crude nuclear weapon could be made with uranium at that enrichment level, Philippe said, and it's
relatively easy to enrich it to the 90% level needed to make a bomb light enough to be carried by a missile.
Iran's stockpile could allow Iran to build as many as 10 nuclear bombs, should it decide to weaponize its program, IAEA director general Rafael Grossi told the AP last year. He added that it doesn't mean that Iran has such a weapon.
What happens after uranium is enriched?
Once enriched, uranium gas undergoes some fnal processing and then is converted back into a solid, pressed into pellets and stacked into a sealed metal fuel rod that goes into a nuclear reactor. It can also be converted to form the core of a nuclear weapon. The process of weaponization is highly complex and involves several engineering challenges, among them miniaturizing the nuclear warhead to make it small and light enough to be carried by a missile.
How is uranium regulated?
Over 100 countries including the U.S. and Iran have signed the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which originally went into effect in 1970 and has been periodically updated. As part of the agreement, countries
without nuclear weapons agree to use nuclear material for peaceful purposes and countries that have nuclear weapons agree to a process of disarmament. The treaty involves regular onsite inspections by the IAEA to confrm that countries are complying with the treaty's terms.
Iran was found to be out of compliance in the early 2000s due to a secret nuclear weapons program. It was in noncompliance again in June 2025 due to its failure to provide "technically credible" explanations to the IAEA about the origin of uranium particles found by inspectors at several undeclared locations in Iran.
What is the current status of Iran's enrichment program?
Tehran has not allowed the IAEA access to its nuclear facilities bombed by Israel and the United States during a 12-day war in June 2025, according to a confdential IAEA report circulated to member states and seen by AP in February. The report stressed that it "cannot verify whether Iran has suspended all enrichment-related activities," or the "size of Iran's uranium stockpile at the affected nuclear facilities."
Photo: Dante Carrer /Tribune file
IN this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, President Masoud Pezeshkian, second right, listens to head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Mohammad Eslami as he visits an exhibition of Iran’s nuclear achievements, in Tehran, Iran, April 9, 2025.
Photo: Iranian Presidency Office via AP, File
IN this photo released by the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, technicians work at the Arak heavy water reactor’s secondary circuit as officials and media visit the site near Arak, Iran, Dec. 23, 2019.
Photo: Atomic Energy Organization of Iran via AP, File
Cancer patient issues plea for O-negative blood donors
“The pain be so intense sometimes I can’t sleep in the night. I cry because of the pain.”
By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net
CRYING from her hospital
bed, Anastasia Johnson said she is in desperate need of O-negative blood donors to help her complete her fnal round of chemotherapy. The mother of three dreams of returning home to her children in Abaco as she awaits answers about her future.
“I cry almost every night because I miss my family. I cried all last night, I haven’t even slept for the day,” Ms Johnson told The Tribune, her voice cracking.
Ms Johnson, 51, has been battling ovarian cancer since last year. Her diagnosis has left her unable to work because of the debilitating pain she experiences daily. She recalled life before her illness, when she spent time with her children over lunch and at the park.
Now, her reality consists of travelling from Abaco to New Providence every three weeks for chemotherapy treatments.
Ms Johnson said her haemoglobin level must reach a
certain threshold before she can undergo treatment.
A healthy haemoglobin level for adult women typically ranges from 12 to 15.5. Ms Johnson said hers has fallen to 7.1, leaving her unable to proceed with her fnal round of chemotherapy until her blood count improves.
Blood donations are often used to increase a person's blood count. Ms Johnson said obtaining O-negative blood, one of the rarer blood types, has been an ongoing challenge throughout her treatment. She said she needs one to two units of blood to raise her haemoglobin level enough to proceed with her fnal round of chemotherapy. While she has never been unable to receive treatment, she said the process of securing blood each month has been mentally draining.
The plea also underscores a longstanding challenge in The Bahamas, where blood banks have frequently struggled to maintain adequate supplies.
Ms Johnson has two sons, aged 11 and 14, and an older daughter. Since her illness, she has relied
on her children's father and other loved ones for support and care.
“The pain be so intense sometimes I can’t sleep in the night. I cry because of the pain.”
Despite her condition, Ms Johnson said she continues to fght every day for her family and prays for a miracle.
She is awaiting her sixth and fnal round of chemotherapy. The treatment will determine whether it has been successful or if the cancer has spread to other parts of her body.
She urged anyone with O-negative blood to donate to the blood bank.
“I just want to say that sometimes,” she added. “When you see people asking for help, if you can help, please do help, because it's a lot mentally that they be going through.”
Those wishing to provide further assistance to Ms Johnson can contact her at 242-804-2078.
than $1m for botched renovation project
By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune News Editor rrolle@tribunemedia.net
A LYFORD Cay homeowner has been awarded more than $1m after a Supreme Court registrar found that an interior designer and his company failed to complete a renovation project, left the work highly defective and repeatedly made false claims about its progress.
Acting Assistant Registrar Adrienne Bellot ordered Antonio Matres and Antonio Matres LLC to pay John “Jack” Platts US$1,026,612.66 in special damages, US$2,000 in general damages, US$63,474.20 in interest and $6,000 in costs. She also ordered the defendants to pay interest on US$1,074,062.66 at 6.25 percent until the judgment is satisfed. The award followed a default judgment entered against the defendants on September 2, 2025. The defendants did not appear in the action or take part in the damages assessment, though the court said it was satisfed they had been properly served and notifed.
According to the ruling, Mr Platts entered an agreement with the defendants in March 2024 for interior design services and furniture for his Lyford Cay home. The work was to be completed by June 30, 2024, for US$45,000.
In May 2024, the arrangement expanded when the defendants proposed managing construction and
renovation work at the home. The parties then entered a construction agreement for US$454,500, with the project due to be completed by September 2024. But the court said the defendants repeatedly misrepresented the progress of the work while Mr Platts was of-island and repeatedly requested more money. By the end of 2024, Platts had paid them more than US$1m.
Neither the design agreement nor the construction agreement was completed. The court said the work was highly defective, forcing Mr Platts to hire emergency labour to address hazardous conditions and engage a new contractor to complete the project.
Ms Bellot accepted Mr Platts’ evidence, noting that it was unchallenged.
“I am convinced by the evidence that the defendants’ work was efectively of no value and even required remediation before the desired work could begin,” she said. Mr Platts claimed US$1,102,062.66 in special damages for payments connected to the project, including construction costs, doors and windows, furniture, customs duties, shipping, unapproved construction extras, unexplained charges, duplicated site visit charges and emergency labour.
Ms Bellot awarded most of that sum, but rejected a US$30,000 claim for delays afecting other contractors,
ANASTASIA JOHNSON
Seabreeze MP laughs off health rumours caused by seafood poisoning
Court awards $1m after defective home renovation
AWARDED from page 12
fnding that it was an estimated and unquantifed amount that could not be treated as special damages.
She also rejected a separate US$3,972,681.98 claim for remediation and completion by a new contractor because it had not been specifcally pleaded in the statement of claim.
Mr Platts also sought general damages for loss of use, inconvenience and distress, as well as aggravated and exemplary damages.
The court accepted that the defendants’ breach caused Mr Platts discomfort and inconvenience.
Mr Bellot noted that his home was left defective
and uninhabitable for several months, depriving him of the use and enjoyment of the property and leaving him to endure the 2024 holiday season with the home in disrepair. However, she awarded only BSD$2,000 for inconvenience and discomfort, citing authorities that damages of that kind in contract cases should be modest.
Ms Bellot refused to award exemplary damages, fnding that the case did not meet the legal test for punitive damages. She also declined to award aggravated damages, fnding that the damages already awarded adequately compensated Platts for his distress.
Mr Platts’ lawyer, Jacy Whittaker, asked the court to award costs on an indemnity basis, citing the defendants’ deceit, their refusal to participate in the proceedings and the burden placed on Mr Platts to trace funds sent overseas.
Ms Bellot rejected that request, saying the defendants’ conduct was not so exceptional as to justify indemnity costs. She said the defendants had exercised their right not to participate and that Platts still had to prove his damages.
She awarded $6,000 in costs for the assessment stage, noting that the matter was uncontested and heard on written submissions.
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
SEABREEZE MP
Leslia Brice used humour in the House of Assembly yesterday to knock down rumours about her health, blaming the weekend scare on a piece of lobster and insisting she is well.
Ms Brice said speculation about her condition spread after she suffered an unexpected reaction while eating lobster on Saturday, prompting calls and messages from family, friends and constituents.
“This past Saturday, I had an unexpected encounter, not with a political opponent, not with a policy challenge, but with a piece of lobster that had other plans for my weekend,” she said.
“Rumours began circulating, Madam Speaker, that were far from the truth, and before I knew it, I was receiving messages from family, friends, and loved ones, of which I am deeply grateful, but what was a truly wonderful feeling for me was the
residents of my beloved Sea Breeze calling and letting me know that they were on their way to be by my side full steam ahead. Madam Speaker, that is love, that is the connection, that is the bond that I share with the people of Sea Breeze.”
Ms Brice thanked those who contacted her and offered prayers, saying the response showed the strength of her relationship with Sea Breeze residents.
She also joked that the health scare was not enough to stop her after surviving the recent election campaign.
“Now, I want to be clear, I was not about to let that little lobster take me out, Madam Speaker. I survived a gruelling and intense campaign. I walked those streets, I knocked on those doors, I stood in the heat for hours, and I am still standing,” she said.
“And if a whole election could not slow me down, a piece of seafood certainly was not going to stop me, Madam Speaker.”
SEABREEZE MP Leslia Brice speaks in the House of Assembly yesterday.
Photo: Chappell Whyms Jr
Officer testifies accuser was crying, shirt torn after alleged rape
By KEILE CAMPBELL Tribune Staff Reporter kcampbell@tribunemedia.net
A POLICE officer testified before a Supreme Court jury yesterday that a woman who accused Kennedy Ingraham of rape appeared distressed and had a torn shirt when he assisted her after the alleged incident in March 2023.
Corporal Rogers Strachan Jr told the jury before Justice Jeanine Weech-Gomez that he met the complainant at the Criminal Investigation Department before taking her for a medical examination. He said she also took him to the alleged crime scene, where she directed him to a green house and said
she was assaulted in the yard. Ingraham is on trial over allegations that he raped the woman on March 20, 2023. Prosecutors allege the woman accepted a ride while travelling to work before being taken to a property in the Coral Harbour area, where she was sexually assaulted. Earlier this week, the woman told the jury that Ingraham threatened her with a firearm, choked her and raped her inside a vehicle parked at the property. She identified Ingraham in court as her attacker. She previously told the jury that Ingraham stopped at a property in the Coral Harbour area and went inside
a residence while she remained in the vehicle. She said he later returned wearing or carrying what appeared to be an immigration jacket and presented it to her before allegedly threatening her with a firearm and raping her.
Defence attorney Sonia Timothy-Knowles has disputed that account, alleging the sexual encounter was consensual and that the complainant fabricated the allegation after Ingraham refused to pay her $250.
Cpl Strachan told the court that he accompanied Milien to the hospital, where a doctor examined her and collected evidence that was later turned over to the
police.
He also testified that he later travelled with the woman to the Coral Harbour area, where she identified the location where she said the assault occurred.
Asked about the woman’s condition at the time, Cpl Strachan said she appeared distraught. Under cross-examination, Ms Timothy-Knowles questioned the officer about his observations of the complainant, but Cpl Strachan maintained that she was crying while he assisted her.
He said he had difficulty communicating with her because he did not speak Creole. A pastor assisted in translating during their interactions
on the day of the alleged incident. The officer told the court that he was present during the medical examination and later transported evidence collected at the hospital to investigators at CID.
Cpl Strachan also confirmed that the woman’s shirt was torn down the centre when he encountered her, although he said he could not recall whether the garment was collected as evidence.
Questioned about the route taken to the Coral Harbour property, the officer said he could not remember the exact directions but recalled travelling to the area identified by the complainant. He also acknowledged
that identifying surveillance cameras at the property was not part of his role because he was not the investigating officer.
Asked about his involvement in the case, Cpl Strachan said his responsibilities included transporting the woman to the hospital, accompanying her to the location she identified and handling evidence collected during the examination.
Crown Counsel Carey asked where he first met the woman. He replied that it was at CID, though he could not recall the exact time other than that it was during the daytime.
The trial was adjourned until 11am today before Justice Weech-Gomez.
45-year-old man remanded to prison on rape charge
By KEILE CAMPBELL Tribune Staff Reporter kcampbell@tribunemedia.net
A 45-YEAR-OLD Bahamian man was remanded to prison yesterday after being charged with rape in the Magistrate’s Court. Vernard Gibson, of Archers Lane, Bozine Town, appeared before acting Chief Magistrate
Ancella Evans accused of having sexual intercourse with a woman without her consent.
The matter proceeded by way of a voluntary bill of indictment.
According to the charge, Gibson allegedly had sexual intercourse with the 26-year-old woman without her consent sometime between June 3 and June 4.
Mr Gibson was represented by attorney Kelsie Munroe.
Bail was denied and Gibson was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. He was informed that he could apply to the Supreme Court for bail.
Mr Gibson is scheduled to return to court on September 13.
‘A million years isn’t enough’: Victims’ relatives confront Gilgo Beach serial killer at sentencing
By PHILIP MARCELO and JENNIFER PELTZ Associated Press
AFTER decades waiting for justice, relatives of women murdered by New York’s Gilgo Beach serial killer laid into him Wednesday before he was sentenced to life in prison. He told them: “I am responsible” for the crimes.
“The words I would say would have no meaning,” added Rex Heuermann, the Long Island architect who lived a secret life of violence for years before admitting he killed eight women.
The sentencing capped an extraordinary investigation that solved one of New York’s most perplexing mysteries. The seemingly unconnected and largely overlooked disappearances of young women became the focus of true-crime documentaries, books and podcasts after police began discovering the victims’ skeletal remains in the sandy scrub along a coastal parkway.
Heuermann, 62, will have no possibility of parole.
“A million years isn’t enough,” Jasmine Robinson, a cousin of victim Jessica Taylor, said. “Nothing will ever make this right.”
“You fill me with so much repugnance, I can’t stand it,” she added.
Judge calls Heuermann ‘despicable’
As a series of victims’ kin spoke, Heuermann sat with his hands on the defence table, looking straight ahead and lightly tapping his fingers.
Then Amanda Funderburg, victim Melissa Barthelemy’s sister, commanded Heuermann to look at her. He glanced in her direction, but his eyes were slightly downcast.
“I hope you suffer,” Funderburg said as she recounted a taunting phone call she received from him days after Barthelemy disappeared. Funderburg was 15 years old.
JoAnn Mack, the mother of victim Valerie Mack, told the killer that her daughter “had dreams, and you took them all away from her.”
“Justice has been done, but it can’t replace what has been taken,” Mack said.
Heuermann pleaded guilty in April to charges that he murdered seven women: Barthelemy, Mack, Taylor, Megan Waterman, Amber Lynn Costello, Maureen Brainard-Barnes, and Sandra Costilla.
Heuermann also admitted in court to killing an eighth victim, Karen Vergata, though he was never charged in her death. He said he strangled his victims, many of them sex workers, and dismembered some of their bodies.
“Are you at least a little sorry?” Judge Timothy Mazzei asked Wednesday in an indignant voice.
Heuermann nodded and appeared to mouth “yes.”
“You are disgusting — a despicable man, if you are a man at all,” the judge said, his voice rising. “And you are a coward.”
As Heuermann was led away in handcufs, spectators in the packed courtroom jeered. Victims’ families recount a confounding loss
Liliana Waterman, who was 3 when her mom vanished, said she has been waiting her entire life to confront her mother’s killer.
“She can fnally rest in peace,” Waterman said outside the courthouse. “He can’t hurt anybody else.”
Most of the women disappeared between 2000 and 2010 and their remains were all found on Long Island. Most were along Ocean Parkway near Gilgo Beach. Costilla’s remains were found in 1993 in the Hamptons, while Vergata’s remains were found in 1996 on Fire Island.
Brainard-Barnes’ two children, who were 7 and 1 when she disappeared in 2007, underscored Wednesday how her absence shaped their lives and how she never got to know the adults they became.
Her sister, Melissa Cann, sobbed deeply as she described wondering for decades if she could have done more to protect Brainard-Barnes. But, she said, that guilt is “not mine to carry. It is for Rex and Rex alone.”
Heuermann’s ex-wife and two adult children said they did not attend the sentencing out of respect for the victim’s families.
How the Gilgo Beach serial killer was caught
The case spilled into view in 2010, when investigators started to find remains along Ocean Parkway while looking into the disappearance of another sex worker, Shannan Gilbert, whose death was ultimately ruled an accidental drowning.
The case went cold until 2022, when detectives linked Heuermann to a pickup truck that a witness reported seeing when one of the victims disappeared in 2010.
Eventually, they matched DNA from a pizza crust Heuermann discarded in a Manhattan trash can to genetic material extracted from highly degraded hair fragments found on the women’s remains.
Investigators amassed other evidence, including cellphone and tracking data showing Heuermann arranged meetings with some victims shortly before their disappearances.
After Heuermann’s 2023 arrest, prosecutors recovered what they described as a “blueprint” for the killings from his computer fles. Among the documents was a series of checklists with reminders to limit noise, clean the bodies and destroy evidence.
Life behind bars
Heuermann will soon be transferred to a state prison after having spent the past three years alone in a segregated cell at the Sufolk County jail, reading crime novels and striking up a brief correspondence with the infamous “Happy Face Killer.”
Calling him “a monster,” Sufolk County
District Attorney Ray Tierney declared there was nothing Heuermann could say to mitigate his deeds.
“There is no doubt this defendant is sorry,” Tierney said. “He is sorry he got caught.”
Defence lawyer Michael Brown said Heuermann has shed tears, and there may be “some sincerity in his expressions of remorse.” His client appeared “as normal as they come” during their interactions, Brown said, in stark contrast with his crimes.
“He’s somewhat of a charismatic fgure when you talk to him,” Brown said.
As part of his guilty plea, Heuermann has agreed to cooperate with the FBI’s behavioural analysis unit to help catch other serial killers.
Judge Tim Mazzei becomes emotional as Jasmine Robinson, cousin of Jessica Taylor, speaks during a victim impact statement during sentencing of Gilgo serial killer Rex Heuermann at Suffolk County Court in Riverhead, N.Y., on yesterday. Photo: James Carbone/Newsday/AP
US o cials say Iran deal calls for diluting uranium at minimum, waiving sanctions, opening strait
By MICHELLE L PRICE, MATTHEW LEE, JON GAMBRELL, SAMY MAGDY and MIKE CATALINI Associated Press
A DRAFT agreement by the United States and Iran calls for Tehran to dilute its stockpile of highly enriched uranium and would waive, but not permanently end, sanctions on the country, according to US ofcials who read the language of the memorandum on ending the war to journalists.
The agreement would also open the Strait of Hormuz toll-free for two months and afrm a commitment to Lebanon’s territorial integrity in the face of Israel’s invasion against the Hezbollah militant group.
US ofcials dictated the language to journalists Wednesday after days of secrecy, speaking on condition of anonymity. Iranian state TV later released text that largely tracks what the US put out.
Meanwhile, Iran suggested the document could be signed by Presidents
Donald Trump and Masoud Pezeshkian. Such a signing ceremony would represent a major step for the two countries, which saw diplomatic relations break of in 1980 over the US Embassy hostage crisis in Tehran. According to the ofcials, the draft agreement includes language that Iran agrees not to develop or procure nuclear weapons. It also addresses Tehran’s highly enriched Iranian uranium, requiring that it be downgraded on site as a minimum.
In return, the US will move to waive, but not eliminate, some wide-ranging sanctions against Iran once the deal is signed. The agreement also secures free passage of the strait for only 60 days, and it does not preclude fees in future, according to the US ofcials and the Iranian draft.
The document also has provisions to ensure the territorial integrity of Lebanon after Israel’s latest attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanese territory. Israel has rejected the prospect of withdrawing from Lebanon, but the agreement expressly states in its frst
point that military operations in Lebanon must stop with the signing of the memorandum.
Under the Obama-era nuclear agreement with Iran that Trump pulled out of in his frst term, Iran also agreed to restrictions on its nuclear program and promised never to build an
atomic weapon. The Islamic Republic maintains that its nuclear program is peaceful.
Trump casts uncertainty on signing plans
Trump, meanwhile, cast some uncertainty on whether the signing would happen as planned. Asked how confdent he was that
the ceremony would take place, Trump said: “You never know with deals, do you? But you’re going to fnd out pretty soon.”
The US and Israel went to war on Feb. 28 in part to prevent Iran from ever getting a nuclear weapon, although Trump’s goals in the confict have repeatedly shifted. The interim deal stops the war before securing that goal. Instead, it opens a two-month period for nuclear negotiations and appears to ofer Iran several benefts up front while extracting little in return.
The US agreement to immediately allow Iran to sell its oil freely and the ofer to eventually lift all sanctions represent major concessions that go beyond the terms of Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Trump withdrew America from that pact in his frst term, declaring it the “worst deal ever.”
The accord likely will draw intense opposition in Washington, and it appears to be a major setback for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has come under criticism at home from the media, his opponents and even some allies as details emerge.
The deal will stop the fighting and start more negotiations
Much of the agreement would restore the status quo before the war, including ending hostilities, restarting talks between the US and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear program, and reopening the strait, the crucial passage for the world’s oil and natural gas and whose closure created a historic energy crisis.
The deal includes an end to the fghting in Lebanon between Israel and the Iranian-backed militia Hezbollah. That is one of the most delicate parts of the agreement because Israel has maintained it will continue to defend itself and to occupy vast swaths of Lebanon. Iran has said Israel must withdraw under the deal.
The White House and other American ofcials have not published the terms and did not immediately respond to questions.
Trump has cited various goals for the war, including at times vowing it would end Iran’s nuclear and missile programs and its support for Hezbollah and other proxy groups in the region. He also suggested it could lead to toppling the Iranian government.
The interim deal falls short of all of these goals, but Trump hailed it Wednesday.
“Nobody knows what it is, but it’s very strong,” Trump said in France, where he attended a Group of Seven summit.
But he also opened the door to abandoning it: “It’s a memorandum of understanding, and if I don’t like it, we’ll go back to shooting at them, dropping bombs.”
Major concessions have been offered to Iran
Some concessions to Iran — including the full lifting
of sanctions and the release of frozen assets — would happen gradually and be linked to progress in the nuclear talks, according to ofcials from Pakistan, a key mediator. They outlined some of the deal’s major points on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.
But in the meantime, the US will issue waivers to sanctions that allow Iran to sell oil freely.
The Islamic Republic’s oil export revenues in 2024 were more than $46 billion. Its main buyer of oil, China, is believed to have bought at below-market prices because of its willingness to ignore the sanctions.
Granting oil waivers at the start of the 60-day talks strips the US of a major point of leverage. Only at the conclusion of the overall deal in 2015 were sanctions on Iran’s oil lifted. The interim deal also opens the door to ending all sanctions Iran faces from the US and at the UN — including those over Tehran’s weapons programs and human rights abuses — though it says the schedule for that will be worked out later. Still, that far surpasses the 2015 deal, which only lifted some sanctions in exchange for Iran drastically reducing its enrichment and stockpile of uranium.
The accord would also provide Iran with at least $300 billion to rebuild — an extraordinary fgure and another major beneft for Iran. The money also appears dependent on the progress of further negotiations.
US Vice President JD Vance has said Gulf Arab nations would invest that amount. But Gulf countries would likely be reluctant to help Iran after Iranian attacks in the war destroyed oil facilities and other sites in their territory.
Trump reiterated Wednesday that the US would not contribute and said it was up to other countries if they wanted to invest.
The pact would provide relief to the global economy
The deal provides a major win for the global economy — the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a ffth of all oil and natural gas traded once passed before the war began. Since then, Iranian attacks on shipping and the threat to vessels efectively shut the strait.
The strait’s closure drove up energy prices around the world and made many basics, including food, more expensive. Iran let out some vessels that paid tolls, something never done before in the strait, which has long been considered an international waterway. The US later provided military support to get other tankers out, but trafc was nowhere near levels before the war. The deal also says the US will lift a blockade imposed on Iranian ports and that the strait will return to its prewar trafc levels in 30 days, while acknowledging Iranian mines may need to be destroyed.
A SMALL motorboat passes anchored vessels in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, yesterday.
Photo: Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA/AP
